This issue of I-News will continue to look at the PC environments and purchase pattern and plans among the Japanese, Korean and Chinese.

JAPAN

•*Sample size:667N

•*Gender ratio(M:F)=1:1

•*Single:Married:Others

=50:46:4

•*Family Structure:

Live with spouse(45%)

with parents(42%)

with children(30%)

with siblings(20%)

Live alone(11%)

KOREA

•*Sample size:300N

•*Gender ratio(M:F)=1:1

•*Single:Married:Others

=47:51:2

•*Family Structure:

Live with spouse(49%)

with children(44%)

with parents(43%)

with siblings(25%)

Live alone(6%)

CHINA

•*Sample size:541N

•*Gender ratio(M:F)=1:1

•*Single:Married:Others

=33:64:3

•*Family Structure:

Live with spouse(63%)

with children(46%)

with parents(36%)

with siblings(8%)

Live alone(7%)

Please answer the following questions regarding your main computer.

•Question 1 : Which type of internet connection do you use? (Single choice)

In Japan and Korea, FTTH is widely prevalent; About 44% of Japanese respondents and 38% of Koreans use them.

On the other hand, in China ADSL is the most popular, as 73% of Chinese use them.

•Question 2 : How many hours per week do you use a PC for personal use? (Single choice)

Among the three groups, Chinese respondents seem to spend the most time on using PCs for personal use; more than 50% of respondents in all age groups over 18 years old claimed that they spend more than 20 hours per week on the computer.

Koreans seem to spend the least amount of time on using PCs for personal use; on average approximately 40% of respondents answered that they spend 1-5 hours per week using PCs.

• Question 3 : What are the main purposes of using PCs? (Up to 3 choices)

In Japan, the main purposes are 1)Web surfing (92%) 2)Email (83%) and 3) Entertainment (28%) followed by work (20%).

Korea shows a similar answer pattern to Japan. The main purposes are 1)Email (77%) 2)Web surfing (72%) and 3)Work (31%) followed by entertainment (28%).

Contrary to these two countries, China shows different pattern;The main purposes are 1)Email (72%) 2)Entertainment (50%) and 3)Work (45%) followed by Chat (43%). It is especially interesting to remark that chatting with PCs is very popular in China, compared to Japan (2%) and Korea (8%).

• Question 4 : When buying a PC, what is the most important factor in your purchasing decision? (Multiple choices)

For Japanese respondents, price is the most important factor (84%).

For Koreans, CPU capability is the most important factor (80%) while Chinese put emphasis almost equally on price (84%) and CPU capability (86%).

• Question 5 : How often do you usually replace PCs? (Single choice)

<Japan>

<Korea>

<China>

The replacement cycle of PCs among Korean and Chinese respondents are slightly shorter than the Japanese; 49% of Korean and 51% of Chinese answer that they replace their PCs every 2-4 years, whereas only 22% of Japanese reported doing so.

In all three countries, males seem to replace their PCs more often than females.

• Question 6 : Which of the following would you like to purchase next time? (Multiple choices)